Sabarimala Mandala Kalam – Pilgrim season November – December at Ayyappa Temple

Lord Ayyappa gives continues darshan to his devotees for 41-days at SabarimalaTemple during the Mandala Kalam (November – December). For 2015 - 2016 - Sabarimala Temples opens on November 16, 2015 evening and closes on December 27, 2015 after Mandala Puja. The Temple then opens December 30, 2015 for Makaravilakku Puja.

The Sabarimala Ayyappa temple remains closed for the major part of a year. So Mandala Kalam is the period chosen by most pilgrims to visit the shrine. The 41-day pilgrim season, also known as Mandala Pooja, attracts millions of devotees to this hill shrine dedicated to Sastha.

The pilgrim season begins on the first day of Malayalam month Vrischikam (Mid November) and continues for 41 days. The Mandala Kalam ends during the fag end of December, in the Malayalam month Dhanu.

The temple is then closed for a day and reopens for the Makaravilaku season, which ends on January 14 or 15.

The temple then opens and conducts pujas only on the first of every Malayalam month and during festivals like Vishu and Onam and also the temple idol installation day etc.

Irumudi - a cloth bundle with two compartments containing traditional offerings to the temple which includes coconut, ghee, malar, rice etc – is a must to enter the eighteen steps and to have a darshan of Ayyappa.